Moving to Pike Township? (Indianapolis, Lafayette: crime, mortgage, houses)

[cds531]

Hello all,

I recently moved to Indy, finally sold my old house, and now im looking for something a bit more permanent. Right now I live on 86th near St. Vincents, and I like the area just fine.

We've found a house we really like off 71st Street a few blocks west of Michigan. Problem is, I want to stay in said house, raise some kids, etc. Everything i've read here says that the schools are not good, and that crime is a growing issue.

The neighborhood itself is confusing. Half of the houses are well kept, well maintained, etc. Then the house next door is rundown, beat up car in the driveway, etc.

Is this a sign of things to come? Is the neighborhood falling apart? Would we be better looking elsewhere?

My price range is about 140-150k. Definitely want to stay there for a while.

I should mention I work right downtown in the government center, so the commute is an issue as well. I keep seeing how Fishers, Carmel, etc. are all highly reccomended, but I dont know if thats in my price range and seems like the commute could be monstrous.

Any advice is appreciated. If we're looking to have kids in the near future, should we avoid Pike?

Thanks

[msamhunter]

Originally Posted by cds531

Hello all,

I recently moved to Indy, finally sold my old house, and now im looking for something a bit more permanent. Right now I live on 86th near St. Vincents, and I like the area just fine.

We've found a house we really like off 71st Street a few blocks west of Michigan. Problem is, I want to stay in said house, raise some kids, etc. Everything i've read here says that the schools are not good, and that crime is a growing issue.

The neighborhood itself is confusing. Half of the houses are well kept, well maintained, etc. Then the house next door is rundown, beat up car in the driveway, etc.

Is this a sign of things to come? Is the neighborhood falling apart? Would we be better looking elsewhere?

My price range is about 140-150k. Definitely want to stay there for a while.

I should mention I work right downtown in the government center, so the commute is an issue as well. I keep seeing how Fishers, Carmel, etc. are all highly reccomended, but I dont know if thats in my price range and seems like the commute could be monstrous.

Any advice is appreciated. If we're looking to have kids in the near future, should we avoid Pike?

Thanks

If you are wanting to stay in Pike, stay in Pike. All of the townships have good and bad areas, it's a city and that's just how it goes. Personally I would look further west than New Augusta. You can actually find some houses in that price range roughly just west of the 465 Interchange @71st st that you may like (just west of Intech Park and East of Lafayette Road zip code 46278. There are also some older areas, more mature and very well maintained just West of Pike HS itself that should come in under than what you are looking for. Great thing about that area is the 465S entrance is just West of Pike at Park 100 and the I65 is right at Lafayette Road & 71st street so the commute is a snap. Pike HS itself is all depends on who you ask. It has an IB program just like Carmel or the International School. It's what your kids choose to take from it.

[missik999]

There are nice homes in Fishers well within your price range. As far as traffic goes, improvements are underway but in the mean time you just have to learn the back ways around.

Schools are excellent, so it is worth checking into the Fishers area.

[indy_317]

You have information, what you do with it is up to you. We are looking at homes in the Carmel area, and $150K should enough to provide for a home. The main thing is what type of home. I want something that is mostly brick and/or stone, at least 90%, so it has been hard finding such homes for $150K, which is our same target price. We will just stay put and save money and spend what we need if that is what it takes. Remember, most folks will pay a ton for their home. Even if you just pay a mortgage for 15-20 years you are going to pay a ton in interest to a bank. If the area is already going down hill, do you want to risk a massive hit on your biggest investment? Fair or not, most people think IPS is the worst school system, the Marion Co. township schools are OK, but most fear they will get worse, and the surrounding doughnut county schools are the best bet.

The drive from Carmel, or Brownsburg won't be that much worse than what you will drive from your target area. Just do some research and decide if Pike is what you want.

[JMMH]

Lived in Pike for a few years near 56th and Guion while also working downtown. Don't think the commute from Carmel would be bad as long as you were close to 65. Fishers is a different story.

Schools seemed okay in Pike. Definitely better reputation than IPS and one of the better Indianapolis township schools I think. I liked the areas near 71st and 86th towards the northwestern part of town, if I had to move back to Pike that's where I would live.